The diamond drill. (Crystal Falls, Iron County, Mich.) 1887-1996, 1887-07-02

city said unto Elisha. Behold, pray thee,
The situation OF this city IL pleasant, ~
my Lord sssth; bat the water Is nnught,
and the ground barren. And he said,
Bring III new cruise, and put salt there
in. And he went forth unto the spring Of
the waters, and cast The salt In there, and
said: Thus said the Lord, i have healed
these waters; there shall not be from
thence any more death or barren land. SO
tho waters were healed unto this day
II. Kings H., 1922
IL Is difficult TO estimate how much
Of the prosperity and health of city
are dependent upon good water. The
time when, through well-laid pipes
and from safe reservoir, an abundance
Of water from Croton, or Ridgewood,
OF Schuylkill, Is brought into the city,
is appropriately celebrated with grafton
aud pryotechnic display. Thank God
every day for clear, bright, beautiful
sparkling water, as II drops In the
shower, or losses up In the fountain, or
rllshes out at the hydrant.
The City OF Jericho, notwithstand-
ing all the physical and commercial
advantages, was lacking in this Inn
portant element. There was enough
water, but II was diseased, and the peo-
pie were crying out by reason thereof.
Elisha the prophet comes TO the rescue.
He says:
"Get me a new cruise; Oil 1t with salt
and bring II to me-"
SO the cruise OF salt was brought TO
the prophet, and see him walking out
TO the general reservoir, and he takes
that salt and throws it into the reser-
yoir, and lol all the impurities depart.
through a supernatural and divine in
fluence, and the waters are good and
fresh and clear. and all the people clap
their hands and lift up their faces in
the gladness. Water for Jericho
clear, bright, beautiful. God given
waterl
At different times have pointed
out to you the fountains of municipal
corruption, and this morning propose
10 show you what are the means for
the recti6cation Of those fountains.
There are four or dve kinds of salt
that have a cleansing tendency. So
far as God may help me, l shall bring
cruise Of salt to the work, and empty
II into the great reservoir OF munich
pal crime, sin and shame, ignorance
nbomination.
In this work of cleansing our cities
have first 10 remark that there Is
work for the broom and the shovel
that nothing else can do. There al
ways has been an intimate connection
between iniquity and dirt. The filthy
parts Of the great cities are always the
most iniquitous parts. The cutters
and the payements of the Fourth Ward,
New York, illustrate and symbolic
the character of the people in the
Fourth Ward.
The first thing that a man does
when he Is converted Is thoroughly 10
wash himself. There were, this morn
ing, on the way 10 the different
churches, thousands of men in proper
apparel who. before their conversion,
were unfit in their sabbath dress.
When on the Sabbath l see man un-
cleanly in his dress, my suspicious In
regard TO his moral character are
aroused, and they are always well
founded. 80 as TO allow no excuse
for lack Of ablution, God has cleft the
continents with rivers and lakes, and
has sunk five great oceans, and all the
world ought TO be clean. Away, then,
with the dirt from our cities. not only
because the physical health needs an
ablution, but because all the great
moral and religious interests OF the
cities demand 1t as positive necessity.
A filthy city always has been and al
ways will be wicked city.
Another corrective influence that
we would bring TO bear upon the evils
OF great cities Is Christian printing
press. The newspapers of any place
are the tests Of its morality or immor-
atty. The newsboy who rushes along
the street with roll OF papers under
his arm is a tremendous force that can
not be turned aside nor resisted, and
at his every step the city is elevated or
degraded. This hungry, all-devourlng
American mind must have something
10 read, and upon editors and authors
and book publishers and parents and
teachers rest the responsibility of what
they shall read.
Almost every man you meet has a
book In his hand OF newspaper In
his pocket. What book Is IL you have
in your handg What newspaper is IL
YOU have In your pocketf Ministers
may preach. reformers may plan, phil
anthropoists may toll for the. elevation
of the suffering and the criminal, but
until all the newspapers of the land
and All the book sellers of the land set